Editing Fennec fox (section)

{{Short description|Species of fox}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2019}}
{{Speciesbox
| name =Fennec fox
| image = Fennec Fox Vulpes zerda.jpg
| image_caption= Fennec fox in [[Norfolk Zoo]]
| status=LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Vulpes zerda'' |name-list-style=amp |author=Wacher, T. |author2=Bauman, K. |author3=Cuzin, F. |date=2015 |page=e.T41588A46173447 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T41588A46173447.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| status2 = CITES_A2
| status2_system = CITES
| status2_ref = <ref name=iucn/>
| genus = Vulpes
| species = zerda
| authority = ([[Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann|Zimmermann]], 1780)
| display_parents = 5
| range_map = Vulpes zerda.svg
| range_map_caption = Range of the ''Fennec fox'' {{leftlegend|#e3b85d|Extant (resident)}}
| synonyms  = {{Species list
| Canis zerda |[[Eberhardt Zimmermann|Zimmermann]], 1780| Canis cerdo |[[Johann Friedrich Gmelin|Gmelin]], 1788|Viverra aurita|[[Friedrich Albrecht Anton Meyer|Meyer]], 1793|Fennecus arabicus|[[Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest|Desmarest]], 1804|Megalotis cerda|[[Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger|Illiger]], 1811|Fennecus brucei|[[Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest|Desmarest]], 1820|Canis fennecus|[[René Lesson|Lesson]], 1827|Vulpes denhamii|[[Pierre Boitard|Boitard]], 1842|Vulpes zuarensis|[[John Edward Gray|J. E. Gray]], 1843}}
|synonyms_ref = <ref name="Lariviére2002"/>
}}
  
The '''fennec fox''' ('''''Vulpes zerda''''') is a small [[fox]] native to the [[desert]]s of [[North Africa]], ranging from [[Western Sahara]] and [[Mauritania]] to the [[Sinai Peninsula]]. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate heat and listen for underground prey. The fennec is the smallest fox species. Its coat, ears, and kidney functions have [[Xerocole|adapted]] to the desert environment with high temperatures and little water.

The fennec fox mainly eats [[insect]]s, small [[mammal]]s and [[bird]]s. It has a life span of up to 14 years in captivity and about 10 years in the wild. Pups are preyed upon by the [[Pharaoh eagle-owl]]; both adults and pups may possibly fall prey to [[jackal]]s and [[striped hyena]]s. Fennec families dig out [[burrow]]s in the sand for habitation and protection, which can be as large as {{cvt|120|sqm}} and adjoin the burrows of other families. Precise population figures are not known but are estimated from the frequency of sightings; these indicate that the fennec fox is currently not threatened by [[extinction]]. Knowledge of social interactions is limited to information gathered from captive animals. The fennec fox is commonly trapped for exhibition or sale in North Africa, and it is considered an [[exotic pet]] in some parts of the world.